Transfer system for cargo bodies



May 17, 1960 ,1.J. BLACK 2,936,912

TRANSFER SYSTEM FOR CARGO BODIES Filed March 17, 1958 4 Sheets-Sheet 1INVENTOR.

ATToeA/Ey5.

May 17, 1960 J. J. BLACK 2,936,912

TRANSFER SYSTEM RoR CARGO Booms Filed March 17, 195s 4 Sheets-Sheet 2'gy N May 17, 1960 AJ. J. BLACK 2,936,912

TRANSFER SYSTEM FOR CARGO BODIES Filed March 17, 1958 4 Sheets-Sheet 3INVENTOR.

s, Mmm/sys.

May 17, 1960 J. J. BLACK 2,936,912

TRANSFER SYSTEM FOR CARGO BODIES Filed March 17 1958 4 Sheets-Sheet 4 Y@T55 Q2 Z2 4 L# INVENTOR.

United States Patent 2,936,912 j y TRANSFER SYSTEM FoncARGo BODIES' tJames J. lilack, Cincinnati, Ohio, assigner to Trailrnobile Inc.,Cincinnati, hio,'a`corporation of Delaware Application March 17, 195s,serai No. 721,908 t z claims. y(ci. 214-38) vehicle onto `or from railsfor .further handling of the` cargo section. f

In accordance with present practices relating to truck hauling, Ithecargo sections of the trucks or semi-trailers are loaded onto railroadat cars as in theso called piggy back system, or into ship holds as inthe so called fishyback system, Ito avoid the necessity of rehandlingeach item-ofcargo in the cargo section. Some installations include.gantry or hydraulic jacks Ifor lifting or lowering the cargo sectionbodily from the wheeled chassis on which it has been carried to thetransfer point. In other instances, the complete semi-trailer includingcargo body andchassis is transferred to rail car or ship. In'either,large and powerful lift equipment is required.

'Ihe.. principal objective of this -invention has been to provide asystem facilitating trans-shipment of a cargo from a semi-trailervehicle through which the cargo is brought to the transfer station byroad, to rails, on which the cargo may be moved onto a railway car oronto a Steamship.

A further objective of the invention has been to provide a systemwherein a cargo section of a roadway vehicle is vertically detachablefrom the chassis and load wheels of -the roadway vehicle in a virtuallyautomatic way, utilizing tractive effort of the tractor of the roadwayvehicle to furnish lthe motive power for effecting the detachment.

A still Ifui-.ther objective of `the present mvention has been toprovide a cargo handling system wherein a .plurality of cargo sectionsof roadway vehicles, when detached from lthe chassis portions thereof,readily may be stored on rails awaiting trans-shipment to railway carsor a Steamship, and wherein cargo sections conveyed to,l

a'transfer point by railway car or Steamship readily may be loaded ontoroadway vehiclesrone` after another in a virtually automatic waywithoutV physical lifting V,of the cargo, such that the need iseliminated for gantry cranes, hydraulic jacks, or the like, whichvheretofore have been required.

Briefly, this invention is directed to a cargo handling system wherein awheeled roadway vehicle comprising a chassis and a cargo sectionvertically detachable therefrom is associated with a tractorhavingavertically adjustable fifth wheel for cooperation with a transferstation compris-ing a downwardly'inclined ramp surmounted by horizontalrails spaced Ifrom one another to reside along opposite sides of a cargosection carried by a chassis driven onto said ramp, for engagement of.the rails with rolls projecting outwardly yfrom the cargo section atyopposite sidesv thereof. In this system' the rails are locatedat alevel to be engaged or surmounted by rolls on the' cargo section as itis backed onto the ram-p under the-motive power of the tractor.` At thistime the vertically adjustable fifth wheel of the tractor is in itsele-fv va'tcd position'. :As the ground wheels of the chassis move icedown the ramp, the cargo load is transferred from the chassis to therails, the rollsy at thi rear end ofthe cargo section first coming intoengagement with the rails, then the rolls at the front end as thetrailer is backed down the ramp. Because of the inclination of the rampor the divergence ofthe ramp relative to the rails, the chassis dropsvertically away from the cargo section and as the unit moveslongitudinally and thereby becomes detached therefrom, whereupon thefifth wheel of the tractor is lowered and uncoupled. This leaves thecargo section rollably deposited upon the rails, and the chassis is nowfree to be pulled up the ramp and driven from the transfer point bythetractor.

l By reason of the fact that engagement of the cargo sectionrollers withthe rails is progressive, starting at the rear end, the tractor sustainsthe front end weight load of the `cargo throughout the period until thecargo section is `deposited upon the rails, thereby insuring that fulltractive effortof the tractor on the ground will be maintained to drivethe equipment :horizontally onto the transfer station. l

For removal by a roadway vehicle of a cargo section which has beenbrought'toV the transfer station by railway car or Steamship, the .cargosection is rolled on the rails to-a position aboveV the ramp, aychassisis ,backed down the ramp or previously has Ibeen backed, the verticallyadjustable fifth wheel-of the tractor therefor being in loweredposition. With the fifth wheel of the tractor located under the cargosection, it is then elevated for coupling ofthe cargo section with `thechassis at the front Aend thereof. The tractor isnow driven forwardly,and

as the rear wheels of the chassis move up the ramp they come intosupporting engagement with the rear portion of the cargo section so asto load the chassis with the cargo section and convey it from the rails.

In the preferred construction cooperable lugs and recesses are employedrespectively on the cargo section and the chassis so as to hold the`cargo section in predetermined position on the chassis and prevent itfrom shifting sidewisely or longitudinally relative thereto. These lugsbecome automatically engaged -in their sockets in either the loading orunloading operation just described. In neither operat-ion is any actuallifting function required except such as may be incidental to themovement of the tractor up the ramp under the tractive effort of .thetractor on jthe ground.

The invent-ion further provides a set of rollers mounted on the rearaxles of the chassis, .the rollers cooperating with chassis rails vbelowthe elevated cargo body receiving rails. 'I'he lower rails insure properalignment of the chassis and cargo body with respect to the elevatedrails when transferring the ycargo body onto the rails, and providesproper alignment of body and chassis when the body is to Abe.transferred onto the chassis.

'Ihe invention also provides a storage arrangement consisting of theelevated rails described above; and a cargo body handling systemconsisting of conveyor driven rails movable into alignmentwith theelevated rails `for receiving and transferring cargo /bodies to theirultimate storage destination awaiting transshipment or to the point Vfortransfer to railway cars or Steamship.

Fig. 4 is'a sectional'view taken along lines vof 4 Fig. 3;

The princilialisttustaral. elements. 0.15j the ia-,vsation..l are.bestshwnfwtlr @fermento-E gs, 1 2.31.3. andat- :T he

@easier System has its Principale elements; two, ra'

2.11am 2...2;. Esch r.,ai1 has.. an. upnerfsnrface Hand. 2 respectivesfor receiving. a. naif.. of. ioni/.ard rollers 2.3-, and.. e Pair.vOfrrearf rollerss 3.0,-, rotatably mountsdfoothsz- Carso section... of;a Semi-.trailer vehicle The fails., 2.0.; andv 2.2.: are integral..with. wehsz; which Support; the rails in an elevatedr nositicm above-Ythe;1

gffqudf At.: i119. IQCSil/llgff end of thetrails, are dewyn:` wardlyinclined entailsionsl 34 which. serve. tof insure Vthe properpositioningzoffthejcargo section rollerslZS; on the.v

rails and are useful particularlyin. receivingthe rollers of cargosections ,n which are., extremely heavily. loaded causingthe rollers218.1v to be several'inchcs.u lower. than is normally the case.

The rollers 2 8. andV Stlare journalledl inthe bottom portion ofadetachable cargo body. 36in the embodia ment illustrated'in Figs.1-.4.y It will be understood that the inventionhas application tocargocarriersoth'er than that shown in Figs. 1 4, including forexamplefacargoV body which is fixed/.to the chassis. In a cargo sectionof this type, the rollers.28;.and 30could.be journalled Further. inasemi-trailcr vehicle invwhich in the chassis. the cargo body'.overhangs theV sides. of the chassis, the rollersneed .not necessarily.`project beyond the sides of the cargo body. VRathertheymay bemountedundenthe.. oor portion of thecargo body, projecting.downwardlyl forengagen1ent;with the rails .20 randf22.

The cargo body 36y isnormally mounted onl a chassis 38 through the useofsuitable positioning means. Thel positioningv meansin the illustratedembodiment yconsists of dowels or lugs ttlfixed'tothel chassis- 38. Thelugs 40..cooperate with4 sockets 42 in the cargo `body, and hold thecargo bodyy in predetermined position` on the fifth` wheel 60 mounted-ona tractor 54. A'prop 52' is,

pivotally mounted on the frame 44 for supporting the chassis when it isdisengaged from vthe tractor 54. 'y

A fragment ofthe tractor- 54 is illustrated'in Figs. 1 and'3 andconsists of a frame member 56 supporting two An upper fifth` operation.At this point, the hydraulic jack is in an elevated. position. in.which., the` forward rollers.. 3.0. are maintained a distance aboveground level sucient to assure their clearing the rails 20--22 when theforward part of the chassis moves down the ramp portion 70A of rails 62.The rear rollers 28, under normal loading, are located a slight distanceabove railsV 20-22 so as to clear the receiving end portionv of therails as the tractor beginsto. back the f trailer. Y

rear traction wheels and theV hydraulically elevated lower v fifth wheel69 of known design having va king pin (not shown) for providing thecooperative hauling engagement of the tractor fifth wheel 60 with thechassis fth wheel 50V.

To insure proper alignment of'the chassis with the cargo body duringboth the operations of transferring the cargo body onto the rails 20-22and transferring the cargo from the rails 20--22 onto a chassis, guiderails 62 are provided.v The rails below the roller receiv.-

ingfsurfaces 24-26of therails 20-22 suicient to causer theseparation-.of the cargo body from the chassis: The rails 62 receiverollers 64 journalled in U-shaped brackets 66 'which areiixed to theaxles 48. Each of the rollers 64- has an outside ange 68 which-maintainsthe rollersaml chassis `in proper alignment onthe rails vt the receivingend of the transfer structure, thegrails;

trailer has backed into position to begin the transfer- The tractorbacks the trailer toward the rails 20-22 and 62, first causing.engagements ofthe chassis rollers; 64 with the rails.6.2:tolperfectthe-alignmentfof thel cargo body rollers. 2 .,wit h the.vrail,l structure..v The chassis continues toward the ramp portion 70causing vthe rear rollers 28 to pass over the.- rails. 20.-.22 and, asthe chassis moves down the ramp, to settle in proper position on thesurfaces 24--26 of the elevated rails. This stage is illustrated in Fig.6. It will be appreciated from consideration ofI Fig. 6;" that asubstantial portion, approximately half; ofttheweightvoffthecargobody-.36v rests onlthe ifthg whee1160fofthe tractor. This relationship is; a, very important aspectl of the invention for it is the addedweight of the cargo body tothe tractorv which givesl the tractor.-enough traction to-continue to drive the cargo body 36 onto the rails.

The tractor continues to drivel the cargo body and chassisrearwardlyuntil-l the position shown inv-Fig. '8 isf reached;

rails L 20`2.2'.r The rollers -Y 28: are elevatedE slightly aboveAthewheels lbecause ofthe elevated position of the tractoriifth-wheel 60.The tractor'flifth wheel, is'lthen loweredx byY-the'means-,oflthehydraulic jack sothat the elementsV take the -position illustratedIinFig. 9'in-which thecargo on the rails 62 for temporary storage.VThere, the-chassis remains untilvit is necessary tol remove a cargobody;

coming from the transfer systernrLrto be hauled away to` anotherlocation. Y

Thel operation of removing cargo bodies from the railst Ztl-,224m justthe reverserof that described inconnectionV withv Figs. 6"-9. In thereverse operation, the tractor; and chassis are moved to the positionyshown in Ei'g.9,

with lugs 40 aligned with the sockets 42,.'` Thehydranlio,

jack is operatedto raise fth wheel ll'bringingthe chas;

SiS `into. engagement with the .cargo body, the dowels '403 being.received. in. the socketsAZ. This stagef .Opera ationl is illustratedyadditionally in Figi..` 3,. the-.br-0kenv lines indicating the positionof the chassis' when .the..fth:

wheel 6G has been. elevated.

The elevationy of the chassis should `bevsufiicient to. inf, l sure thata substantial portion of the weight of the-cargo.-

bodyEis on the tractor 54 to provide traction ofthe wheels 58 withtheground.- The cargo body can ,then be hauled..

off therails 29%22 in the.Y stages illustrated in Pigs.7 and;vv

6.` The jack is then lowered so that thesemi-trailer takes=margarina-shownin,Fig,;6.readv for hauling away.

.The handling-system for. transferring the cargo body--and-movingthechassis tostorage Vis illustrated with refer-..

ence .toFigs. 3 andf5. Referring particularlyto Figs 3;'.

thererissliown afconyeyor-72 driven byf'a motor '(notshown) and havingalug arrangement 74 fixedfthcreto'forNv engagementl with the cargobody-to pull thecargobodyjbaci;v along the-rails 21) 22 after it hasbeen separated'f.' fronrits chassis. The conveying of. the cargobodyfr'eesf.. the. .receivingendpcrtienof jrai1s2tl-f22 tcrrrmiti addi-3ticnallcareg.bodiestcfbebrought in..v Thus,l a nnmberoffj' In-thisposition, the cargo body 36 including,- the rollers- 28l and 30is overthehorizontal-portion off cargo bodies can be stored awaiting furtherthe rails 20--22 as indicated in Fig. 5.

Fig. also illustrates the manner in which each rail, except the outsiderails, can support the rollers of two adjacent cargo bodies. Thisfeature is also illustrated in Fig. 4'and consists of a vertical,longitudinally extending flange which separates each elevated rail intotwo roller receiving surfaces. j

Referring again toFig. 3, an endless conveyor 76 equipped with lugs 78runs between the lower rails 60-62 for pulling the chassis 38 back intostorage underneath the cargo bodies.

A system for the further handling on handling by the cargo bodiesr isillustrated in Fig. 5 and consists of parallel rails 80 l,

xed in spaced relation and mounted for movementon transverse rails 82.The transverse rails 80 can be moved to positions adjacent theA rails--22 by means of motor driven endless conveyor 84. When positionedadjacent the rails Ztl- 22, a cargo body can be conveyed onto thetransverse rails and then shifted to another area of the Y' loadingstation 86 for furtherptransfer. For example, the rails indicated at 86could beurails for transporting the cargo body to the hold of a ship orto at cars or the like.

In a general manner, while therehas been disclosed in the abovedescription, what is deemed Yto be the most practical and ecientembodiment of the invention,l itL should be well understood that theinvention is not limited to such embodiment as there might be changesmade in the arrangement, disposition and form of the parts with# outdeparting from the principle of the present invention ascomprehended-within the scope of the accompanying claims.

Having described my invention, I claim:

1. Apparatus for selective engagement and disengagement of a cargovsection with respect to ak semi-trailer rails having a cargo sectionreceiving upper surface located a distance above ground level, adownwardly inclined ramp below said railsfor receiving at least thechassis of a sernitrailer for selective engagement and disengagement ofthe end of said chassis remote from said fifth wheel with respect tosaid cargo section when said cargo section is disposed on said rails,and an elevatable ifth'wheel on said tractorl for supporting the fifthwheel end of said chassis, whereby the end of said cargo sectionnormally adjacent said fifth wheel may selectively be removed ordisposed on said'rails.A

2. The method of connecting a cargo section to a semitrailer chassishaving its forward end connected to the fth wheel of a tractor andremoving said cargo section from supporting rails on each side of saidcargo section comprising the steps of positioning said chassis betweensaidr'ails and directly below saidcargo section, elevating chassisconnected to a tractor by an upper fth wheel,

said apparatus comprising, horizontally spaced rails, said said fifthwheel relative to said tractor and thereby bringing the forward end ofsaid chassis into engagement with said cargo section, connecting theforward end of said chassis to said cargo section, and removing saidcargo section from said rails by moving said tractor and connectedchassis and cargo section forward until the entire cargo section isgradually brought into fully supported engagement with said chassis. Y

y References `Cited iri the file of this patent UNITED STATES PATENTS

